"My word," he said when he saw the cat. "You are a sorry, soggy sight." He
opened the window and the cat stepped in. "You can stay until the rain
stops," he said, shutting the window, "Then you've got to go." Mr. Foster
was the hotel manager and was used to giving orders.
The cat sat down on the wide windowsill and began to lick the rain off his
thick, gray fur. He was smiling all over inside himself, for he knew from
the moment he stepped inside the Sylvia Hotel that he was a stray cat no
longer.

All of Lois Simmie's children's books have received the Canadian Children's
Book Centre "Our Choice" award. The Saskatoon writer's other works
include Auntie's Knitting a Baby, An Armadillo is Not a Pillow, and What
Holds Up the Moon?

Mister Got To Go, based on a charming and true story, tells of a stray cat
that wanders into Vancouver's Sylvia Hotel one rainy night. Mr. Foster,
the hotel manager, says, "'That cat's got to go' as soon as it stops
raining." Seven years later, he is still saying, " That cat's got to go,"
but Got to Go has become the cat's name and the Sylvia Hotel, his home.
Got to Go soon earns his keep as a dog detector - dogs are not allowed at
the Sylvia - and hotel mascot. There is also a raucous epic battle between
Got to Go and a racoon. This likeable tale will be appreciated by children
as young as five. The language and storyline are fairly straightforward and
could be read independently by students in grades two and three. The only
problem, possibly due to its 'true story' origins, is a narrative which lacks
depth and verges on being sentimental. Cynthia Nugent's beautiful
watercolours are packed with humorous detail that all ages will enjoy. The
lush, rain-soaked urban landscape of Vancouver and the hotel's quaint
atmosphere are vividly conveyed. Nugent's characters, particularly Mr.
Foster, exude kindness and good humour. The book is as comfortable as an old
chair . . . perhaps like one you might find in the lobby of the Sylvia Hotel.